


Reunion

by orphan_account



Category: It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, Pacific Rim (2013)
Genre: F/M, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-09-14
Updated: 2013-09-13
Packaged: 2017-12-26 12:28:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,468
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/965924
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Charlie and Dee entertain Charlie's young cousin Newt during the Kelly Family reunion.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Iris K.](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=Iris+K.).



“To the new owners of Paddy's Pub!” Dennis cried, lifting his beer high. Mac, Dee, and Charlie followed suit, whooping and cheering. As Charlie tilted the bottle to his lips, he spotted a small figure watching them from behind a nearby tree.

 

Charlie recognized his youngest cousin even without really seeing him. Newton Geiszler was the son of his coolest relatives – an aunt and uncle who were famous musicians in Germany. Charlie and Newt had only met a few times, and, despite the fourteen year age difference, looked almost identical. It was how Charlie knew it was little Newt watching them – they shared the same small frame, wild, dark-brown hair, and blue-green eyes.

 

“Hey, Newt,” Charlie said, putting his beer down and spinning around on the bench. He used Dee's shoulder to steady himself as he stood, moving towards the tree. “Why you hiding, buddy?”

 

Newt stared up at him through thick glasses, clutching a stuffed doll (that looked a lot like Godzilla to Charlie) to his chest. “I don't want to be here, Charlie. No one likes me.”

 

Charlie screwed up his mouth. He'd heard his mother earlier talking about how Newt was incredibly smart – certainly not much like anyone else in the family – and unbelievably shy. “Aw, don't say that. How about you come sit with my friends and me for a little while?”

 

Slowly, Newt stepped out from behind the tree and followed Charlie as he walked back to the table. “Guys, I want you to meet my favorite cousin, Newton.”

 

Climbing up beside Charlie, Newt looked around the table nervously, his lip pulled between his teeth. “Hi,” he said quietly. “I don't like Newton, actually. I like what Charlie calls me.”

 

Dee was the first to speak up, her blue eyes kind under blonde bangs. “What does Charlie call you?”

 

“Call me Newt.”

 

Mac gestured to Charlie as Dee introduced herself and Dennis to Newt. Turning away, Charlie leaned closer. “What's up?”

 

“Dude, why the hell did you bring a kid over here? We can't be _normal_ with a kid here!”

 

Charlie sighed. “Man, just let him hang around for a while. Everyone pretty much ignores him usually.” He looked up to where his Uncle Jack was talking to his mom. “And I don't trust the ones who don't.”

 

Mac sighed heavily. “Fine. But this is very uncool, Charlie.”

 

Charlie rolled his eyes and turned back to Newt, who was explaining something way over Charlie's head to Dee. She smiled and nodded in what seemed to be all the right places, and when Newt finished talking, she shook her head in disbelief and said, “Oh, wow, Newt. You are _really_ smart!”

 

Charlie could see the pride in Newt's grin. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Mac and Dennis share a look, but he chose to ignore it. “Hey, buddy, wanna go play catch?”

 

Newt eyed his cousin warily. “I've never played catch before, Charlie.”

 

Mac all but fell off the bench when he heard that. “What? You've never – ? Charlie, what the hell kind of parents does this kid have?”

 

“Hey, language, dude!” Charlie cried. “And leave them alone. Aunt Monica and Uncle Steven are awesome people. So what if the kid doesn't know how to play catch? That's what his older cousin is for!” He got up from the table again and jogged over to where some of his teenage cousins were playing a weird version of Dodgeball and grabbed a softball from the sports bag. “Come on, Newt! Follow me!”

 

Newt trundled along behind, dragging Godzilla behind like a child much younger than his age. When Charlie saw it, his heart twinged a bit – he may not have been as smart as Newt, but he knew the look of a kid who was out of his element.

 

“Hey, why don't you put Godzilla by the tree and come stand here?” Charlie suggested.

 

Newt hugged his toy. “It's not Godzilla. It's Gamera.”

 

“Is there a difference?” Charlie realized his mistake almost immediately.

 

“Yes! Gamera is a _turtle_ , Charlie! Godzilla is a _lizard_! You should watch the movies with me one day!”

 

Dee joined the guys, plopping down on the spot Charlie had pointed to and holding out her arms. “Hey, Newt, give Gamera to me. I'll watch him while you play with Charlie.”

 

Without a second's hesitation, Newt's face broke into a smile. He slipped Gamera into Dee's hands and hurried to Charlie's side. “Okay, what do I do?”

 

“Stand here,” Charlie replied, shooting a wink in Dee's direction. “I'm going to go over there and toss the ball to you. Don't worry if you don't catch it. Just have fun!”

 

On the first pitch, a gentle underhand, Newt missed it by a mile. Actually, he jumped away from it, but Charlie just grinned and Dee cheered, clapping Gamera's claws between her own hands. “Okay, Newt, grab the ball and toss it back.”

 

Newt held the ball with two hands, scrunching his face into a look of pure determination. With all the power he could put behind his tiny figure, he launched the ball – which caught Charlie dead in the stomach. It wasn't the hardest hit, but Charlie played it for all it was worth, doubling over and wheezing, “Dee! I think we have the next Tug McGraw here!”

 

+

 

For the better part of ninety minutes, Charlie and Newt tossed the ball back and forth – Newt getting better at _not_ ducking, Charlie getting more and more animated with each pitch. Dee acted as cheerleader from the sidelines, punctuating her commentary by making Gamera dance or cover his eyes. (Granted, her words for Charlie were far less complimentary than her words for Newt, but no one seemed to mind.)

 

It was nearly four-o'clock when Charlie and Newt flopped down on the grass, Charlie rubbing his shoulder and Newt propping his head up on his cousin's knees. Dee shimmied over to them, dropping Gamera onto Newt's belly and sitting cross-legged near Charlie's head. “I think you're a better pitcher than Charlie now, Newt.”

 

Charlie shot her a look, and she responded by wrinkling her nose and sticking out her tongue. He could almost hear the, “Bite me, asshole,” behind the face, but knew she'd never say it in front of the kid. “How ya feeling, buddy? Did I tire you out?”

 

Newt rolled onto his side, his cheek pressed into Charlie's kneecap. “Nope! I'm not tired.” He squeezed Gamera close. “Hey, Charlie?”

 

“Yeah, Newt?”

 

“Did you bring your guitar today?”

 

Charlie saw Dee's eyebrow shoot up, but he ignored her to answer Newt's question. “Uh, no, I didn't, Newt. Why?”

 

Newt shrugged slightly. “Uncle Gunther has been teaching me how to play, but he plays really weird music and last time I saw you, you were playing something by Pink Floyd and I thought it would be cool if you could teach me a little.”

 

Charlie pushed himself up on his elbows. “Tell you what, buddy. I'll send you a video teaching you how to play some of my favorites, okay?”

 

“Would you, really?” Newt said, sitting up. Charlie nodded, laughing at Newt's excitement, and Newt threw his arms around him. “You are _awesome_ , Charlie!”

 

“I've known you forever, Charlie, and I had no idea you play guitar,” Dee said, looking down at him, her eyes soft.

 

“Charlie is an amazing musician!” Newt cried. “He plays guitar really well, but he's even better at piano. Once, he played Beethoven's Third Piano Concierto for me without even reading any sheet music!”

 

Charlie's face was burning under Dee's awed gaze. “I'm not _that_ good.” He shoved all the way up so he was sitting slightly ahead of Dee – he really wasn't comfortable talking about his musical skills, and he couldn't understand the way she was looking at him.

 

Newt bounced to his feet, hitching Gamera up around his neck in a mock piggyback. “What else can we do today? The sun is still out and Mom said we could stay until it gets dark.”

 

Charlie pulled the most overdramatic thinking face he could, causing Newt to crack up and Dee to look away to avoid losing it herself. Just then, they heard the _clang-clang-clang_ of the nearby railroad warning bell. “Hey, Newt, wanna go throw rocks at the train?”

 

Newt narrowed his eyes. “Why would I want to do that?”

 

That was always the question, and Charlie never had an answer other than... “Because it's actually more fun than it sounds.”

 

Newt shared a look with Dee, who shrugged. “Well, it's _something_ ,” she said. “I can't say how _fun_ , but maybe we should take Charlie's word.”

 

Charlie thought he should take some offense to the doubt in Dee's voice, but before he could react, she was up and leading Newt by the hand towards the tracks. Rolling his eyes, he clambered to his feet and followed behind.

 

+

 

“What do we do, Charlie?” Newt asked.

 

Charlie stood beside Newt, hands full of small pebbles (and no _small_ amount of dust and dirt). “Wait for the bells,” he instructed. “The train comes by four minutes later. Then – well, then you throw.”

 

Newt stared at him. “You're weird.”

 

“Yep.”

 

“Very,” Dee chimed in. This time, his reaction was quicker, and he flipped her off behind Newt's back. She mouthed, “ _Fuck you_ ,” over his head, and Charlie rolled his eyes.

 

The train whistle sounded again, and Newt bounced on the balls of his feet. “Should I count to two hundred and forty?”

 

Charlie laughed. “Just _wait_ ,” he said. “You don't have to count!”

 

Newt went silent, still hopping from foot to foot, and Charlie could almost _hear_ the numbers in his young cousin's head. When Dee and Charlie exchanged glances over his head again, both of them grinned.

 

“Two hundred thirty-nine, two hundred _forty_!”

 

On cue, the train roared past the three, and Charlie reached down and held Newt's hand still. “Not the first car, buddy. Wait until the driver passes.”

 

When the lead car was out of the way, he let go and yelled, “Now!” Almost in unison, Charlie, Dee, and Newt started winging their little pebbles at the passing cargo cars. The little _plink-plink-plink_ s were almost musical, and by the time the last car was gone, they were all laughing and jumping up and down.

 

“Why the _hell_ is that fun, Charlie?” Dee asked, breathless and beaming.

 

“I have no idea, but you're smiling, so stop asking!”

 

+

 

They waited around for three more trains before Charlie noticed Newt's energy dropping. The sun was almost completely down in the west, so he wiped his dirty hands on his jeans and hoisted Newt up into a half-piggyback. Dee grabbed Gamera so that Newt could link his arms around Charlie's neck, and together, they all walked back to the picnic area where the Kelly family was starting to pack up.

 

“Hey, Aunt Monica, look who I brought back,” Charlie said, dropping to a knee. Newt climbed off his back and moved to his mother, dropping his head on her hip.

 

Monica Geiszler smiled. “Thanks, Charlie-boy.” Charlie felt the blush creep over his cheeks – his aunt was only a few years older than him, and the nickname had stuck from when they were kids growing up together. “Did you have fun today, Newton?”

 

Newt nodded sleepily. “Charlie taught me how to play catch, and then he said he'd teach me how to play guitar by making me a video, and then we threw rocks at the trains...”

 

Monica raised an eyebrow at Charlie, and he shrugged. “Don't ask. I still can't answer that one.”

 

She picked Newt up and brushed his hair out of his face. “Well, I'm glad you guys got to spend the day together. I wish we lived closer. Newt could benefit from having you around, Charlie.”

 

“Will you come to Germany some day, Charlie?” Newt yawned.

 

“I'll try, buddy.”

 

Newt grinned. “Thanks for playing with me today.” Dee reached over and tucked Gamera into the crook of his arm. “You, too, Dee. You guys are so fun.”

 

Charlie and Dee followed Monica as she carried Newt to the car. They stood side-by-side as it drove off, Monica's happy face in the rearview mirror, Newt's waving out the back window.

 

“He's a great kid, Charlie,” Dee said softly.

 

Charlie nodded. “Yeah, he is. Thanks for hanging out with us today, Dee.”

 

She shrugged, bumping his shoulder with her own. “I had fun. Well, the most fun I could have without beer.” There was something in her voice that he couldn't place, even when he met her eyes. “C'mon, Charlie. Let's go see how drunk Dennis and Mac got without us.”

 

+

 

_Sixteen years later..._

 

Dr. Newton Geiszler, PPDC KSO had been working all night, and was quite literally up to his elbows in kaiju entrails. Behind him, an old CD player blasted a classic Pink Floyd album, and every so often, Newt found himself singing along.

 

“ _Don't give me that do-goody good bullshit, I'm in the high fidelity first class traveling set, And I think I need a Lear jet..._ ”

 

The door banged open, and Newt didn't have to look up to see Dr. Hermann Gottlieb's frustrated face. “For the love of god, Newton, will you _turn that noise down_?”

 

“Can't. Kaiju guts.”

 

Hermann rolled his eyes, and moved to the radio, turning it down so it was almost inaudible.

 

“And where in the _world_ did you get that atrocious t-shirt?”

 

Newt's eyes lowered to the glossy black horse on the front of the shirt. He hadn't seen Charlie in years, but they'd spoken a few months earlier. He was safe and had happily explained that he'd recently started dating “the love of his life” (he'd heard Dennis' voice in the background yelling that it was only because the world was ending that she'd finally said yes, but Charlie didn't seem affected).

 

“It belonged to my favorite cousin.”


	2. Epilogue(ish)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Just a little add-on to "Reunion" that made me smile.

It was nearly a year after Gipsy Danger and her team had closed The Breach. Hermann and Vanessa had taken their newborn - a beautiful baby girl named Anastasia - away to the country for a few weeks, back to where Vanessa was born, a town that had been deemed too dangerous before. Raleigh and Mako were gone too, probably wrestling tigers in a remote jungle somewhere. Herc was off, still grieving but determined to honor his son and see every part of the world Chuck hadn't managed to find. For the first time since its inception, the PPDC (still active as a military branch and research facility) was on vacation.

 

Newt hitched his backpack higher on his shoulder and exited the muggy, cramped tunnel into a brightly lit atrium. His boots barely touched the rug in the terminal when he heard a screech.

 

"Holy shit, buddy, those are some wicked tattoos!"

**Author's Note:**

> I purposely did not name Charlie's new girlfriend at the end of the story. It's a choice of two, of course, and I have my opinion, but that stays with me. Because I am an evil, evil person.


End file.
